In some communication systems, a voting processor is provided to support processing of data from multiple input sources. Such voting processors receive data from multiple input sources and determine a best quality data for use in further processing of the received data. Conventional systems use a centralized approach for determining best quality data. One such centralized approach employs a prime site incorporating the voting processor and multiple sub sites for providing data captured at the various sub sites to the prime site. In such systems, each sub site may receive a signal transmitted from a same particular source. However, the data received by each sub site may vary in quality, and the quality at each sub site may vary in time, and therefore the sub sites further forward the received data to the prime site. Upon receipt at the prime site, the voting processor at the prime site processes the incoming data from each of the sub sites to determine best quality data, and perhaps combines data from a plurality of sub sites to create an improved overall data signal better than any single best quality data from a single sub site.
In the centralized approach, a prime site typically employs a single voting processor to process the incoming data from multiple sub sites for determining best quality data. However, in case of failure of (i) the prime site, (ii) network connection(s) between the prime site and the sub sites, and/or (iii) the voting processor itself, the voting system would not be able to determine best quality data and further communications and/or processing may be dropped and/or prevented. Therefore, conventional systems employing a centralized approach of using a single voting processor typically have a single point of failure. Accordingly, there is a need for a solution that would eliminate the single point of failure in communication systems supporting determination of best quality data, and a network structure and communication method to support that solution.
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The method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.